The European Space Agency and ArianeGroup announced the successful hot fire test of the main stage of the Ariane 6 rocket; This is the first of two tests before ESA is ready to set a date for the rocket’s first launch. The tests were conducted on September 5 at the launch site of the spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. The prototype Ariane 6’s main stage was powered by liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen, and the Vulcain 2.1 engine was running for four seconds as planned.

“The test is an important step towards the qualification of the Ariane 6, as we have specifically validated all the operations required to run a full launch campaign,” said Martin Sion, general manager of ArianeGroup, Ariane 6’s prime contractor. .

A hot-fire test was previously scheduled for July, but was stopped because the engine could not ignite. The ESA later reported that the automatic countdown was interrupted “due to certain measurements exceeding established limits” and was later canceled due to a lack of liquid oxygen.

“We didn’t have enough time to do this and we didn’t have enough oxygen in the tanks, so we decided to stop the timeline and try again to fire Vulcain fully on the next timeline,” said space director Karin Levault. transportation in France. Space agency CNES spoke about the July initiative during the ESA briefing on Sept.

The test was postponed to August 29, but canceled again after ESA said there was a “technical issue affecting the control stand” handling the fuel loading and automatic countdown. Levo said there were “no obvious technical issues” with the control stand, but engineers needed more time to make sure everything was ready for testing.

“This completed hotfire test of the Ariane 6 was critical to minimizing the potential for an accident during the final launch and ensuring its success. The step-by-step qualification of all operations leading up to launch requires a well-coordinated effort from CNES, ArianeGroup and ESA.” CNES president Philippe Baptiste said in a statement.

This short-term test will be followed by a second test scheduled for 3 October, during which the Vulcain 2.1 engine will run for 470 seconds. Its purpose is to support the final qualification of the main stage for flight.

At the briefing on September 4, ESA Director-General Josef Aschbacher said the agency will be ready to determine the target launch period for the first Ariane 6 once long-term testing is complete. It is stated that if all goes well in future tests, the launch will take place in 2024 “before it’s too late”. The first rocket launch was scheduled for 2020.

“We have a great team working on this program,” said Toni Tolker-Nielsen, ESA’s director of space transportation. “We’re all feeling it; we’re taking the final steps to enter the Ariane 6 era.” Source